Scrambled Brains on the Side, Please
by Titan5
Summary: The team is captured by some acquaintances of Kolya, who just may have driven Sheppard over the edge in their attempt to find Atlantis.


Disclaimer: None of this belongs to me.

Summary: The team is captured by some acquaintances of Kolya, who just may have driven Sheppard over the edge in their attempt to find Atlantis.

Note: This is for kriadydragon (Stealth Dragon) as part of the Sheppard H/C Secret Santa. I'm copying others and putting the prompt at the end. Merry Christmas!! (Yes, I know I'm late – the story ran a little longer than I intended – shock, shock).

**Scrambled Brains on the Side, Please**

By Titan5

Teyla shoved herself a little more tightly into the cold metal corner of the cell, tucking her bare arms in between her pulled up legs and her chest in an effort to ward off the chill. The shiver that followed sent tremors through her sore, aching muscles. With a deep sigh born of exhaustion, as well as frustration, she allowed her head to dip forward and touch her knees. Her stomach growled loudly, making her want to laugh for some reason. That was the closest thing to conversation she'd had in two days.

They had been captured ten days ago. She knew because she had discovered that standing on tiptoes while peering through the tiny window in the door gave her a glimpse of daylight at the far end of the hallway. There was no natural light at night. She had kept track of the days so she would know the passage of time, but that knowledge was now working against her, making her wonder if Atlantis would be able to find them.

The people who had captured them claimed to be freedom fighters, but the only freedom they seemed concerned with was their own freedom to do as they wanted. They had apparently been friends with Kolya and some of his men and through them had heard of the Lanteans. The team had gone to a market to shop for stray Ancient artifacts, as they did twice a year during the festival days when the open air market was huge. They had been almost to the gate on their trip home when they had been hit with drugged darts, all at about the same time. They awoke together in a cell a few hours later, unsure even of what planet they were on.

A strange shuffling came from down the hallway outside her cell, catching Teyla's attention. She lifted her head and listened. She knew the normal sounds of her captors and this had been different. The sudden clanging of the key in the lock had her jumping and scrambling to her feet, ignoring the pain from her bruises and strained muscles. Tensing, her back against the wall, she bent her knees slightly, crouching into a ready position. The door flew open and her knees almost buckled.

"Ronon," she hissed, her heart going so fast she was becoming lightheaded.

Ronon took up the whole doorway, the hair on top his head brushing the doorframe above him. He was filthy and bruised and bloody, his clothes torn and mangled, but he smiled broadly, his white teeth flashing at her. "I decided it was time to rescue ourselves."

The words she wanted to speak caught in her throat, so Teyla just nodded. She was more than ready for that. Following the Satedan into the dark hall, she hoped he knew where he was going. They turned left at a junction with another hallway after Ronon checked that the way was clear. He silently moved to the third door on the left and then took out the keys. "McKay's here," he whispered. "Keep an eye out for guards. There's still one more around here somewhere." The lock clicked and Ronon slowly pushed the creaking door open and stepped in.

Seeing no one around, Teyla stepped in after him. Rodney was just sitting up from his position lying in the corner, his right arm held carefully against his chest. He looked a lot like Ronon and like Teyla imagined she looked. Bruises, torn and dirty clothes, scratches and cuts with dried blood smeared everywhere. His eyes grew wide with hope when he saw them.

"Are they here? A rescue team?"

"I got tired of waiting," said Ronon. "We're rescuing ourselves."

Rodney looked at them blankly for a moment before shrugging one shoulder a little. "Okay, I can live with that." He struggled to get to his feet, hampered by only having one arm to use. Teyla rushed forward to help him.

"How is the arm?" she asked. Their captors had interrogated them as a group the first time, beating them each in turn as the others kneeled with their hands tied and a gun pressed to the base of their skull. None of them had revealed Atlantis's location, which was apparently what they were after. The men had left them alone for several hours and then hauled them off one at a time for their own personal interview. Rodney had returned from his with a broken arm, which she and John had set and splinted with what they had. The bandages holding the small sections of broken bamboo in place were filthy beyond words, but at least the arm still looked straight.

"Hurts like heck, what do you think?" snapped Rodney. "If this had been a compound fracture, I'd be dead from infection by now."

"Stow it and be quiet," whispered Ronon sternly. "We need to get Sheppard and get out of here before the general alarm is sounded."

Teyla steered Rodney toward the door. "Do you know where they are keeping him?" she asked, wondering if he was still alive.

"I know," Ronon answered.

"How did you know where we all were?" asked Rodney, this time his voice soft and quiet.

"Got it out of the guard I jumped before I killed him. Follow me." Ronon didn't even pause as he checked the hall and then led them to stone steps at the end of the corridor. They descended deep into the bowels of the structure, the air cooling noticeably as they moved. Ronon paused at the bottom to look and listen, Teyla and Rodney joining him.

Teyla heard something from the open door at the end of the short corridor. As they crept closer, she thought she heard someone yelling, followed by a scuffling noise and someone else shouting.

"S-s-stop! No more! G-g-go away!" The hair on the back of her neck stood on end at the sound of John's voice, filled with anger and fear. "N-not telling you!"

Ronon rushed forward and threw the door the rest of the way open so that it banged on the wall behind it, startling the people in the room. Teyla came up behind him, all pain and exhaustion forgotten in the rush to help her friend.

Two large guards had John pinned to the floor in the corner as a man in a white coat stepped back, an empty syringe in his hand. The guard holding John's outstretched arm in place let go of his prisoner and turned to face Ronon. "What are you doing here? How did you get out?" he demanded as he reached for his weapon.

Ronon answered with a roar as he rushed the man, throwing him back against the wall as they almost tripped over John. The second guard regained his wits and went for Ronon's back, but the big man whirled around and elbowed the man in the gut, sending him to the floor as the first guard recovered enough for a second attack. Teyla launched herself at the man in the white coat who was trying to slip out the open door. She knocked the syringe from his hand and grabbed his wrist, twisting his arm up behind him. She could see John sitting listlessly in the corner from her peripheral vision.

"What did you give him? What have you done to him?"

The man grunted and she pressed him face first down to the floor, placing her knee in the small of his back as she continued to hold him in place. "I asked you what you did to the Colonel. I expect an answer or I'll break your arm." She could hear Ronon still battling the two guards, but her attention was focused on the little man in front of her.

"Drugs," he muttered.

"I _know _that. Do you think I am stupid? _What kind _of drugs did you give him?"

The man was breathing hard, sweat beginning to pop out on the side of his face. He was afraid. Good. She wanted him to be afraid. "Just . . . we're experimenting . . . makes him confused . . . so maybe he'll forget what's happening . . . tell us what we want to know."

She spared a glance at John and winced at what she saw. He was slumped in the corner, his breathing irregular, his eyes glassy and unfocused. Covered with bruises, he also had a lot of blood on his head and she could see an oozing head wound on right temple and disappearing into his hairline. There wasn't much left of his t-shirt and his arms lay askew, revealing the reddened needle marks down both forearms.

"How many times have you given him drugs? And is it always the same?"

The man didn't say anything, just continued to pant in fear. She pressed down harder with her knee. "Answer me!"

"Lots . . . don't know for sure . . . not always me, but . . . lots. Sometimes different combinations to . . . make him talk. Daecon hates him . . . wanted him to suffer." The man was whimpering now and Teyla knew she should feel guilty for the pleasure it gave her.

"Daecon . . . he is the one in charge . . . the one with the crooked front tooth," she stated. The man beneath her nodded. "Why does he hate Colonel Sheppard?"

"The Colonel . . . insults him . . . kicked him in the . . . between the legs . . . one day . . . when he tried to escape . . . Daecon said . . . he had to pay." Another whimper escaped, making Teyla wonder if the man was crying. "Please . . . let me go . . . please . . . don't kill me . . . I can help you get out."

"We don't need help," said Ronon from behind Teyla. It was then that she realized that she hadn't heard the sounds of fighting for several moments. She glanced up at her large friend as he wiped a stream of blood from his chin.

"Ronon, could we use his help?" she asked.

Ronon paused a second. "Do you know where our weapons are?" he asked.

"Yes!" the man responded immediately. "I can show you."

Ronon gave her a nod. "He can stay alive to help us find our weapons and get out. If he crosses us, I'll slit his throat."

Teyla responded with her own nod. "I think that is fair." She loosened her hold on his arm, letting the man get to his feet. He rubbed his arm briskly, obviously trying to restore feeling as he clenched and unclenched his fist.

"Your friend," he said, nodding toward John. "He's going to be disoriented and he's been really violent. You should leave him if you want to get out of here alive."

Taking a step closer to the man, Ronon flashed him a feral grin. "We aren't leaving him, so you'd better figure out a way to help us all escape."

Teyla frowned at John, now eyeing them warily, his body shaking as he pulled himself up to a squatting position. His eyes were bright, his pupils so huge she could no longer see the hazel irises. She kneeled down, extending her hand. "John, it is me, Teyla. We have come to help you, to take you back to Atlantis."

Laughing, John shook his head. "No, you're dead. You aren't real. You . . . you were sent by them, to make me talk. And I won't. I'll never give you Atlantis, _never. _I'll die first . . . don't mind taking you with me." He caught them all off guard when he leaped to his feet and bolted for the door. Teyla would never had imagined he was capable of moving that fast. He'd seemed too pale and fragile as he crouched in the corner, blood smeared all over his face and neck.

Ronon tackled him, sending them both to the cold, hard floor.

"Don't hurt him," Rodney pleaded, cradling his injured arm to his chest. John kicked and punched in a wild, uncoordinated and desperate attempt at freedom, but Ronon held on tightly. They rolled around in a fury of flying fists and legs before John suddenly went limp. Ronon pulled away and looked at the slack face, trying to figure out what had happened.

"Did you kill him? You Neanderthal, we're supposed to be helping him escape with us, not beating him to a bloody pulp," Rodney ranted.

"He does that sometimes," said white coat. "When he fights us really hard, sometimes the exertion makes him pass out. I think it might have something to do with the hits to the head he took."

Teyla stared at the man, her fury building. "Tell me about his head injuries."

White coat seemed to realize he was walking a fine line between helping his position and making it worse, but he swallowed hard and continued. "Daecon . . . he hit him in the head several times since you've been here, sometimes knocking him out. The Colonel vomited on him after he woke up from the first hit, and that made Daecon mad so he hit him again. He's . . . he's been pretty mixed up the last few days, especially with the drugs. I think . . ." He trailed off, looking at John and then at the floor.

"What?" asked Rodney. "You think what?"

White coat brought his eyes up to Teyla. "Tell us," she said softly.

"Minta, he's the one deciding what drugs to give, he says the Colonel's mind is gone, you know, scrambled too much. I . . . I think maybe he's right. You should just leave him here."

Ronon growled as he got up, clenching his fists to his sides. "You say that again and I'll break your neck."

"Uh, guys, shouldn't we be getting out of here soon?" asked Rodney in a slightly high-pitched voice, his eyes darting to the still open door.

"Yes, we must go now," Teyla said, giving Ronon a firm look. They were deep in the complex and if they did not get out soon, they would become trapped. She shuddered to think what Daecon would do to them if he caught them trying to escape.

Growling at white coat, Ronon bent over to retrieve the weapons from the guards, handing one to Teyla and the other to a reluctant Rodney. Teyla was just grateful the now unconscious men had been too surprised to use them. Pointing her gun at white coat, she watched as Ronon bent down to pick John up and she was happy to see he hadn't flung the injured man over his shoulder. She was pretty sure someone with severe head trauma shouldn't hang upside down.

"Let's go," he said gruffly, peering out into the hall and then motioning for them to follow. Teyla urged the man in the white coat forward and Rodney followed behind her.

"Where are our weapons?" she asked and Ronon paused to hear the answer.

"Upstairs. I'll show you."

Ronon turned and narrowed his eyes at the frightened man. "Just remember, you lie to us or mislead us in any way, I'll take pleasure in slicing your throat open and watching you bleed to death," he said.

"Believe him," muttered Rodney.

"I do," said white coat quietly. From the look on his face, Teyla believed that he was telling the truth.

Several minutes later, they had their weapons and were standing at the door to the complex entryway. Teyla peered into the room while Rodney covered white coat and then quietly slid several steps back to her team.

"There are two guards at a desk near the door. They are sipping a beverage and talking, but do not seem disturbed," she reported.

Ronon eased John down to the floor and checked his weapon again to make sure nothing had been done to it. "We can take them and then we'll get out of here. McKay, you keep an eye on this guy and on Sheppard."

"We should do this quietly," said Teyla. "If we make a lot of noise, we'll attract more guards and it will be harder to escape, especially carrying John."

"I can help," offered white coat.

"Why would you do that?" asked Rodney, his brow furrowed in suspicion.

"I need to go with you to the gate," he said. "Look, I won't pretend to be innocent in all this. That would be pointless. But when you escape, they're going to know I helped you and Daecon will kill me, probably slowly and painfully. If you'll let me travel with you to the gate, I can go back to my home planet and I'll be safe. None of these men know where I'm originally from."

Teyla looked up at Ronon, and recognized the look on his face. He wanted to kill the man for his role in what was done to John, but she knew their best chance for survival was to get out quietly. "Ronon, we could use his help. He is not the one responsible, Daecon is."

"But he helped. Daecon couldn't do all this unless his men went along with him. Personally, I think we should just kill him here." For a moment, Teyla was afraid he would do just that and ruin any chance they had to get out. She had come to care for Ronon as family, just like she cared for John and Rodney, but his temper had a tendency to get him, and sometimes the rest of them in trouble.

"Do you know where the gate is?" asked white coat quietly, the slight smirk on his face telling them he knew they didn't. "I go or you can wander around looking for it while trying to elude Daecon's forces. Good luck with that."

Ronon's face reddened and for one brief instant, Teyla was afraid he would just reach out and snap the man's neck. Then he exhaled slowly and gave a brief nod. "One wrong move, and I kill you where you stand."

White coat turned to Teyla. "I want your word you will let me go unharmed if I help you. I trust you, not him."

Teyla nodded. "You have it." She looked sternly at Ronon, telling him in no uncertain terms that he was to honor her bargain.

"Okay," the man said, rubbing his sweaty hands on the side of his pants. "I have an idea of how to get us close to the guards. I'm going in and attract the guards over here close to the door and then you jump them."

"That's it?" Ronon hissed in a whispered shout?

"Just watch and be ready," he said as he opened the door and staggered through it. They watched through the crack as he weaved a few steps, dropping to his knees with a loud groan. "Help . . . me," he rasped.

The guards immediately rushed over, kneeling down beside white coat. Giving Teyla a nod, Ronon burst through the door with her close on his heels. He stunned both guards in rapid succession, so all Teyla ended up doing was watching. Ronon went back into the hall and scooped up John while she kept watch on the entrance.

"Come on McKay, we're leaving."

Rodney followed Ronon through the door. "It's about time," he muttered.

oOo

Twenty minutes after leaving the compound, John began waking up, thrashing around to the point Ronon had to put him down to keep from dropping him. It was still dark, but the moonlight had allowed them to make good time. They had traveled a narrow trail that paralleled the edge of the forest. Teyla had appreciated that the cover of trees was only steps away should they encounter anyone. There was no sign of pursuit yet, but who knew how long that would last.

Kneeling beside John, Teyla took his hand in hers as he moaned and struggled for consciousness. "John, it's Teyla. We are here and we are going back to Atlantis. Can you understand me?"

John's eyelids fluttered several times before snapping open. With a grunt, he scrambled back away from them until his back was against the trunk of a large tree. Using the plant for leverage, he got shakily to his feet. Teyla had caught a brief glimpse of his wild eyes before he'd nearly lost himself in the shadows of the forest edge.

"John, please, it is Teyla. Look at me. You know me, John, and you know I will not harm you."

Her teammate continued to stand crouched beside the tree, eyes darting wildly from person to person. "Stay away . . . stay back . . . I'm not . . . just . . . stay away."

"He doesn't know us," Rodney whispered. "Why doesn't he know us?"

"I told you this would happen," said white coat sourly. "He's slowing us down and we're going to get caught."

Ronon turned on the man, grabbing his shirt front and picking him up off the ground. "Don't say it. I told you what would happen and if you want to live, you better not even think it. We are not leaving him."

"I know, I know, I get it. I was just making an observation."

Rodney snorted. "If you know what's good for you, you'll keep your observations to yourself from now on. No one here wants to hear them."

Teyla took a small step toward John, holding her hand out. "John, it is Teyla. Remember Teyla. Remember my face, my voice. You know me and you know I won't hurt you." She struggled to make her voice as calm and soothing as possible, trying not to let the fear show through.

"Lies!" John rubbed his hand across his face. "They killed you. I . . . I had friends . . . but they're dead. He killed them. Go away!"

"Teyla, we don't have time for this," Ronon whispered to her.

"We must make time," she hissed angrily back. She wasn't angry with Ronon, but with the situation and with her own rising fear of being captured again. "John, please, trust me. I'm going to step closer so you can touch my face. You will remember that you know me."

John tried to step back, but he hit the tree trunk behind him almost immediately. For a moment, she thought he might run, but he stayed, his muscles trembling with tension. She slowly walked closer and then lowered to one knee in front of him as he crouched in the shadows. A sliver of moonlight slipped through the foliage to glint off one eye, reminding her of the eyes of wild dogs she had seen on Athos. A shiver briefly ran down her spine.

"I'm going to stay here, still for you. I want you to touch me, John. I want you to see that I'm real." She tried to keep her breathing even and her fear under control. She had to gain his trust if they were to get home.

Narrowing his eyes, John finally reached his right hand out slowly, fine muscle tremors making his hand shake. As soon as his finger touched her face, he jerked his hand back as if he'd been burned. Not taking his eyes off her, he reached out again, this time gently tracing his finger down the side of her face as he frowned in concentration.

"Hurt me?" he said softly as he began to pull his hand away. Teyla captured his hand as gently as she could and held it between hers, stroking the back of his hand with her thumb.

"Never, John, would I hurt you. Please, come with us. We want to help you."

"John?"

Teyla smiled at him and reached out to touch his face. He tried to pull away, but she held his hand and paused, letting him see her. "John is your name. I am Teyla. I will not hurt you. Trust me, John. Please." She let her hand move forward until she touched the side of his face. He flinched, but did not pull away.

"John. Teyla." He was sweating profusely, in spite of the coolness of the night and now that she was close, she could see how glassy and unfocused his eyes were. His entire body trembled and shook.

"Teyla, we _have _to move now," Ronon urged.

John startled at the deep voice and moved quickly to scrabble in front of Teyla and push her behind him. "No . . . don't hurt . . . leave us alone!"

"Oh, for crying out loud," Rodney complained. "Can't you just stun him so we can go home before we get caught again?"

"No," said Teyla. "It is too dangerous with the head injuries and drugs." She leaned forward to grip John's shoulder, but stopped before touching him. "John, we must go. They are our friends. They are helping us. We have to go before the enemy gets here and captures us."

"Enemy? No. Don't want to be captured again. They hurt." His eyes darted around, searching the area for signs of enemy soldiers.

"Sheppard, come on. I promise, I won't hurt you or Teyla, but we have to go and we have to go now. If they catch us, they'll hurt us some more. You don't want that, do you?" asked Ronon. Teyla could tell he was trying to reason with John, something that was proving nearly impossible.

Shouts from the trail they had just come down caught all of their attention. John jerked to face the noise, looking panicked at the sound. "Hurt us?"

Teyla latched onto his arm firmly and placed her face close to his. "John, we must go _now_," she said as firmly as she could.

John finally nodded. "Go!" he said, snatching Teyla's hand and taking off in a staggering run down the path.

"Thank God," murmured Rodney, moving along side white coat as Ronon brought up the rear, trying to keep an eye over his shoulder for their pursuers.

They ran for several minutes before John began to weave and stumble. Teyla held onto his hand at first, but quickly moved to his arm to offer more support. A few seconds after the ring came into view, he fell to his knees. When she stopped to help him up, white coat ran past her.

"Thanks guys, but I'm out of here," he called as he rushed to the stargate.

In her peripheral vision, she saw Ronon's gun come up. "Ronon, no! He did what he said. Let him go and help me with John." White coat either didn't know what was happening or had decided to take his chances, because he never slowed. Ronon growled and dropped his gun, coming forward to help her get Sheppard to his feet.

She heard the gate whoosh to life as Ronon touched John's arm, stimulating him to whirl around and strike out at Ronon, falling on his butt in the mid-swing. His wildly uncoordinated actions might have been comical under different circumstances, reminding her of drunk characters in Earth movies. But there was nothing comical about the fear in his eyes or the shouts topping the hill behind her.

"They're here!" Rodney shouted, moving quickly for the DHD as the gate deactivated. "Just grab him and let's go!" She could hear Rodney punching out the address for Atlantis.

John lashed out at Ronon again and then rolled over to his knees and jumped quickly to his feet. Looking around wildly, his eyes found Teyla and he took the few steps needed to place himself between Ronon and Teyla. "You . . . can't hurt her . . . can't hurt me. . . go away."

Ronon threw up his arms in frustration. "Teyla!"

She didn't have time to answer before crude bullets from the weapons of Daecon's men were hitting the ground in front of them. They all dodged instinctively, even though they were out of range and would be for a few more seconds.

"McKay?" Ronon roared. "Hurry up!"

The gate came to life a second later and Rodney began to punch in his IDC, recovered along with their weapons from their captors. "Just give me a second." He was crouched down behind the DHD, trying to make himself a small target. More bullets impacted the ground, closer than last time.

"John, trust me. We must go now or Daecon's men will capture us and hurt us again. Please." She hoped his desire to protect her would drive him to listen to her. Teyla moved around to stand at his side and touched his face. When he glanced down at her, she smiled, trying to be reassuring because she could almost feel his fear and confusion. "John, we have to go, _now._"

"Go, now," he repeated blankly, as if the words meant nothing to him.

A bullet hit the ground at their feet, throwing up grass and dirt and startling John. Shifting his eyes from the disturbed ground to the blue puddle in the center of the gate, he frowned and narrowed his eyes as if thinking. "Go, now," he repeated.

Rodney, standing just in front of the event horizon, motioned at them to come. Ronon gave her a gentle push from behind. "Go, Teyla," he rumbled in her ear as the sounds of shouts and gunfire filled her head. Gripping John's arm tightly, they ran for the gate, stepping through to leave the planet that has caused so much misery behind.

oOo

The alarm was blaring when they stepped through and John immediately put his hands to his head, swaying to one side. Teyla strengthened her hold on him, trying to keep him upright. She could hear people calling out, but she focused on John, trying to maintain contact so he would not panic. When the alarm suddenly shut off, he dropped his hands and pulled her behind him. Several soldiers had their guns pointed at them, standard fare under the circumstances. They had, after all, been missing for ten days.

"No!" he shouted, holding his arms out protectively. "Don't hurt. No more!"

She could see Elizabeth pause, somewhat confused, at the base of the steps. Rodney walked over to her, his arm held protectively against his chest. Ronon stood a few feet away, keeping a wary eye on John and the soldiers. Their guns lowered, but they continued to stand at alert, no doubt due to the bizarre behavior of their CO. Carson and several medical personnel arrived in the gateroom, but Rodney and Elizabeth cut him off, preventing him coming any further into the room.

"Back up," said Ronon. "You need to give him some space."

"Do as he says," ordered Elizabeth. "He's not armed and he's been drugged. He's just confused."

The men look unsure, but they finally relaxed a bit and started backing up, putting some space between themselves and the bedraggled looking pair. John's shoulders drooped a little as some of the tension eases. Just as Teyla begins to step forward, John lists dangerously to his right and she is barely able to grab him, supporting his weight enough to lower him to the floor.

Vaguely aware of people coming up behind her, she eased his head down gently and watched his eyelids flutter. "John, we are home. We are safe."

His brow furrowed slightly and he stared at her. "Teyla."

"Yes," she said with a brief smile. "Telya, your friend."

"Friend?" His eyes were beginning to drift, the unfocused look returning.

"Yes, John, friend. We are all your friends and we'll take care of you." His eyes seemed to roll a bit before coming back to meet her gaze. He looked as if he wanted to say something, but his lids did the open and shut thing a few times before closing and staying that way.

"All right, lass, we'll take care of him now." Carson's lilting voice flowed over her and she pulled herself away from John's side to let the medical crew in. Hugging her arms around her middle tightly, she watched as the doctor quickly assessed his patient and readied him for transport. A minute later they were wheeling John away on a gurney.

"Teyla, are you all right?" She turned to find Elizabeth standing beside her, concern on her face.

"I will be," she said. "They drugged John many times and he has been hit in the head as well."

Nodding, Elizabeth took her by the arm. "Rodney told us. Ronon is making sure he gets to the infirmary okay. How about if I walk with you?"

Teyla nodded, knowing Elizabeth was making sure she arrived at the infirmary as expected. She hadn't realized until now how hard her heart was pounding in her chest. She'd been too caught up in getting John back to Atlantis, in making sure they all arrived back in Atlantis. It was taking a minute for her mind to accept that fact that they were actually safe.

"I thought he was dead," she blurted out, not even sure of where the thought came from.

Elizabeth tightened her grip slightly, grimacing at the thought. "Why?"

Teyla wasn't sure why she had chosen now to bring this up. The fear of John being dead had been eating at her for several days now. She told Elizabeth how they had beat them together the first day and then separated them for their own session. "The third day they put us all in separate cells and they questioned me again. Then they left me alone for the next two days, only bringing me food and water twice a day. But then they came and bound my hands behind me and took me to a room where they had John tied to a chair. He had been beaten very badly and he . . . he looked disoriented. I now believe that he had been drugged as well." Her thoughts drifted back to the confrontation.

_John's head was bowed, his chin to his chest. Daecon stood behind him, grabbing a handful of hair and pulling John's face up where he would see Teyla. "There she is, Colonel Sheppard. Teyla, a member of your team. Do you remember what I told you would happen? You will give the address and code to enter Atlantis."_

_Blood ran from John's nose and a cut on the side of his head. The area around his right eye was blue and purple and the lid was swollen shut. His lip was split, a small trail of blood streaming down his chin. "Go. . . to hell," he managed to croak out, spitting blood in the floor._

_The guard holding her grabbed her hair and jerked her head to the side. "Perhaps you'd like to give us the information we need. If one of you doesn't talk soon, people are going to start dying."_

"_Don't," wheezed John, trying to keep his good eye open so he could meet her gaze. Daecon cuffed him in the side of the head, making John grunt in pain._

"_I will tell you nothing," she spat. "None of us will."_

"_That's too bad," Daecon said. "Guess someone will need to die. Take her!"_

_The guard jerked her arm, pulling her into the corridor while another guard slammed the door shut. Pushing her, he herded her back to her cell and through the door. As he took the bindings off her wrists, a gunshot echoed through the building._

"_What was that?" asked Teyla, trying to determine which direction the sound had come from._

"_Guess you should have told Daecon what he wanted to know. That's one less prisoner to feed," the guard said smugly as he pushed her in and shut the door. The sound of his laughter echoed in her head, even now._

"I thought they had killed John because we would not talk. I never saw him after that until we escaped."

"That must have been horrible," said Elizabeth, frowning and shaking her head. They paused at the entrance to the infirmary. "Do you think they did the same thing go John, made him think they had killed you?"

Teyla nodded. "John said we were dead, all of us. I believe they might have done that with each of us, making him think they were killing us one by one. I have not had the opportunity to ask the others yet, though, so I am not certain."

"Okay, well, let's get you checked out and we can sort out the details later. The important thing is that all of you are home."

Nodding, Teyla glanced furtively into the infirmary. "Yes, we are finally home."

oOo

Teyla was cleaner than she had felt since leaving Atlantis. Her cuts and scrapes, although mostly healed at this point, had been cleaned and cared for and she was dressed in white scrubs. The nurse that had tended to her informed her that Dr. Beckett would want them all held overnight for observation after their ordeal. The doctor was still behind the curtain with John. She glanced worriedly from the closed off cubicle to where Ronon sat, also dressed in scrubs, on the bed next to hers. Rodney was somewhere in the back, having his broken arm set.

"Doc will take care of him," Ronon said.

Sighing, Teyla nodded in agreement. "I know, but . . . John was so confused." It had cut her like a knife when John hadn't know who she was, who any of them were. For him to be afraid of his team . . . she shuddered at what he must have been through for that to happen.

"Don't listen to what the freak on the planet said. He just wanted us to leave Sheppard behind so he wouldn't slow us down. Sheppard will be fine."

There was a sudden grunt, followed by some shuffling and mumbling behind the curtains. This was followed by a crash and one of the curtain panels being knocked to the floor. John, also dressed in white scrubs, tripped over the fallen panel and dropped to his hands and knees. Carson was scrambling to get up from being splayed across the side of the bed, while a nurse sitting in the floor began climbing to her feet.

Teyla was off the bed and at John's side before Carson was completely upright. She noticed Ronon moving to block the door so John couldn't leave the infirmary. "John, you need to calm down." She eased her hand onto his back. When he flinched, but didn't pull away, she rubbed gently, trying to establish a connection. After a few seconds, John looked up at her and then pulled sideways, scrambling to his feet.

"Teyla," he said, looking at her briefly before pushing her behind him while trying to face both Ronon and Carson at the same time. "Leave . . . us alone."

Teyla tried to move around him so she could look at him, but he kept shoving her back. "John, please, look at me. It is all right, these are our friends. They only want to help." It was hard to plead for cooperation from someone when looking at the back of their head.

"No! Not friends. More needles." He rubbed his arms, first one and then the other. "No more needles. Makes me . . . can't think . . . "

Teyla jerked away from the hand trying to hold her back and moved in front of John. She placed her hands on either side of his face. He tried to pull back, but she held him firmly, staring into his eyes. "Look at me John. I am Teyla. You are John. This is Atlantis, our home. That is Carson." She turned his head slightly where he was looking at Carson, standing just a few feet away. Unsure of what to do, Carson gave John a small wave.

"Carson is our doctor and sometimes he has to use needles to make us better, but he will not drug you like they did. He will not do anything that will hurt you. John, he has saved your life on many occasions. Do you not remember?" She could see John's brow furrow as he tried to focus on her words and process what she was saying. After a few seconds, his expression softened.

"Carson. Atlantis. Home?" He shifted his eyes down to hers, the look of hope on his face almost painful to see.

"Yes, John, we are home. Please, trust me. Trust them."

"Lad, I promise to avoid using any needles unless I have to," said Carson. "Please, let us help you."

John stared at Carson for several moments before giving a faint, almost hidden nod. "Head hurts," he said, bringing one hand up to touch the side of his head. "He hit me."

Carson nodded and took a step closer. "I know, lad, and I can help you with that. We just need to scan you and see how much damage was done. Can you let me do that? It doesn't hurt."

"Doesn't hurt?" he asked, chewing on the edge of his curled in lip. "Tired of hurting," he said softly.

Carson smiled, now close enough to slowly put one hand on John's arm. "No lad, it doesn't hurt, you have my word."

John took one step with Carson before turning back to Teyla and reaching out his hand. "Teyla."

She looked up at Carson, her eyebrows raised in question.

"Aye, lad, she can stay with you if that will make you rest easier." Carson glanced down at her. "Are you all right with this? I haven't had a chance to talk to the nurse yet. Are you injured?"

"I am fine, just tired and bruised. I would like to stay with John. I think he trusts me and it will be easier for him." She knew she needed to stay close until the drugs were out of his system so he wouldn't panic and fight them. She was exhausted and hungry, but nothing came before a teammate that needed her.

She stood by and talked to John during the scan so that he would remain still and then accompanied him back to his bed. He was asleep when the nurse came to start an IV and didn't stir at all. Teyla noticed they had stitched up the cut on the side of his head. New and old bruises covered his face and arms. She looked down at her own arms and saw the fading bruises and partially healed scrapes and cuts. They had continued to beat him after they had stopped working on the rest of them. She had noticed that both Rodney and Ronon's injuries were like hers, older and in various stages of healing. At some point, they had focused all their attention on John. But why? Were they going to work on him until he gave in or died, and then start on someone new?

"Teyla, would you like to come over here with the others so I can talk to you?" asked Carson. Nodding, she got shakily to her feet, swaying a moment at the weakness that caught her off guard. "And then I'll have to insist that you lie down a bit," Carson said in that fatherly tone of voice that made her feel young and protected.

"But John?"

"Aye, I know. We'll just put you in the bed next to his." Carson had one arm around her shoulder, letting her lean against him as they walked to where Rodney sat in bed, his arm in a cast. Ronon was sitting on the foot of his bed and Elizabeth stood next to him, arms crossed and expression serious. They watched quietly as Carson eased Teyla into the chair next to the bed.

"Carson," said Elizabeth, her question clear.

The doctor crossed his arms and looked at each of them in turn. "As you can see, they're all a bit battered with scattered bruises and cuts that have now been tended to. And they are all dehydrated and suffering from mild malnutrition. You'll all be my guest for the night and I'll be running a bag or two of fluids through you, so I don't want any lip about it. Amy is rounding you up some lunch that should be here in a few minutes. Rodney's radius and ulna are fractured, but the Colonel and Teyla did a fine job of splinting it. Thankfully the bones were aligned properly, so after a good cleaning, all he needed was a cast."

"No permanent damage?" asked Elizabeth, letting her eyes stray over to the too quiet scientist.

"No, I expect a full recovery," said Carson.

"That's good. What . . . what about John?" she asked. They all looked at the sleeping figure on the other side of the infirmary, surrounded by monitoring equipment.

Carson sighed and shook his head. "I can't say anything for sure. He's got a couple of cracked ribs and some deep muscle bruising, along with some congestion and fever. That's the least worrisome problems though. They've pumped him full of drugs, which we have yet to identify. Teyla told me they've used different kinds and apparently sometimes in combination over the past few days. Some of them were evidently experimental and he's got numerous injection sites on both arms and a few on his neck. The scan shows signs of several head traumas and that has me more worried than anything. When someone receives two head traumas, like a concussion, very close together without a chance at full recovery in between, the effects are sometimes magnified. I'm afraid that may have as much to do with his disorientation as the drugs."

"But he'll be okay as soon as the drugs are out of his system, right?" asked Ronon.

Carson held eye contact for a moment before letting his gaze drop. "I don't know. We'll have to let the drugs run their course and then see."

Ronon clenched his fist and hit it against the palm of his other hand. "When can we go back? We need to get Daecon before he does this to someone else. He knows Atlantis is still here and he won't stop until he's dead or here."

"We'll talk about it tomorrow, after the three of you have had a chance to rest," said Elizabeth before glancing up at Carson. "Let me know if John's status changes. I need to check with Ladon and see if he knows anything about this Daecon."

Carson nodded as she turned and left and then looked down at Teyla. "Come on lass, let's get you into a bed and get that IV started. Ronon, you need to find your bed again as well so we can get all of you on fluids."

Teyla let Carson help her over to the bed, glancing over at John as the doctor tucked her in. She kept telling herself that John would be all right now that they were back in Atlantis, but it didn't seem to diminish her concern.

"We'll take good care of him," Cason said softly, the worry in his eyes confirming his words.

Managing a small smile, Teyla nodded and placed her hand on Carson's forearm. "I know you will. You always take excellent care of us all, and for that I thank you."

Smiling sheepishly, Carson set his free hand on top of hers. "Well, I appreciate that lass, I do my best. Your team keeps me hopping though, that's for sure. Don't you worry about Colonel Sheppard. We'll get him through this. We always do."

"Yes," she said, with a nod and a small smile. "We always do."

oOo

Teyla awakened, unsure of what had aroused her. Blinking, she took in the darkness and quiet, concluding that it was late. Turning her head to the left, she saw Ronon lying on his side, watching her. Before she could speak, he nodded beyond her, his eyes narrowed and his face tense. She quickly turned to her right to find John looking at the ceiling. A knot of worry formed instantly in her stomach and she propped herself up on her elbows to see him more clearly.

"John?" she whispered. When he didn't respond, she sat up and began climbing out of bed, only to feel the pull of the IV line going to her left hand. Sighing heavily, she rolled over and got out on the other side so that she could roll the IV stand around the bed to check on John. When she approached his bed, he shifted his head slowly in her direction. Teyla placed her hand on John's arm and smiled at him. "John?"

He looked at her a moment and then licked his lips. "Teyla?"

She was surprised at the pleasure that filled her when he said her name. "Yes, it is Teyla and we are safe in Atlantis."

"At . . . atlantis?" His brow furrowed as if he was concentrating and his voice sounded uncertain. "Where . . ." He rolled his head around as if looking for something.

"John, what is it?"

He coughed and then turned his head back to face her. "Is this real?" John struggled to lift his head, as if trying to get up, but he quickly fell back against the bed.

"Yes, this is real. We are safe, John. They cannot hurt you any more." She wasn't sure if he understood her, because he continued to look a little bewildered.

"Someone . . . someone else . . . was with us. I can't . . . " John scrunched his eyes shut as if digging deep into his memories and coming up empty.

"Ronon and Rodney were with us. They are fine also. We all made it back safely to Atlantis, so just rest, John." She gripped his arm a little more firmly, trying to reassure his muddled mind that everything was all right.

His eyes opened and his face relaxed as he gave a tiny nod. "That's right . . . Ronon . . . Rodney . . . Teyla . . . We . . . we are a team."

"Yes, we are a team and we are family. Are you in any pain? Would you like me to get Dr. Beckett?" He looked at her a moment, but said nothing. His eyes eventually drifted closed and his breathing evened out. Teyla continued to stroke his arm for several minutes until she knew he was asleep. When she turned to go back to her bed, she had to pause and hang onto her IV pole for support as a wave of dizziness washed over her.

"Teyla?" asked Ronon, who was now sitting up in bed.

Steadying herself, she glanced over at her teammate. "I am fine," she said, pushing her IV pole back into position beside her bed.

"Sheppard?"

"He is asleep. He is still disoriented, but I believe it is getting better."

Ronon lay back down as Teyla got herself settled. "Sheppard's strong and tough. He'll be fine."

Teyla smiled to herself, pulling the blanket up a little farther. "Yes, I believe he will."

oOo

Teyla stepped into the infirmary and was greeted almost instantly by Carson Beckett as he stepped out of his office. "Oh, lass, did you need something? You aren't starting to have any pain, are you?" he asked, his face suddenly becoming concerned. She, Ronon, and Rodney had only been dismissed an hour ago, just after lunch.

"No, nothing like that. I only wanted to see if John had woken up yet."

Carson smiled at her. "No, not yet. Amy is just about to get a new blood sample so I can see if the drugs have left his system yet and then I'm going to check him over. Are you worried that he's still confused about where he's at?"

Teyla walked beside Carson as he moved toward John's bed. "Yes, I am," she admitted as they stopped near the foot of the bed. She watched as Amy slid the needle into the crook of John's arm. She and Carson both jumped when John suddenly yelled and jerked upright, pulling both arms back. The vial of blood Amy had been drawing went flying across the room to shatter on the floor several feet away. John's hand had hit her with enough force that she was flung to the floor and he scrabbled back away from her, trying to go over the side of the rails.

"No . . . no more needles . . . no more drugs," he yelled

Carson quickly moved to the side of the bed and pushed John back against the bed, trying to keep him out of the floor. Teyla came up beside him, grabbing John's shoulder.

"John, please calm down. It's Teyla, John, please, you are going to harm yourself further. No one will hurt you, we are in Atlantis, remember? We are safe."

After several seconds, John finally stopped struggling and lay on his side panting with his eyes closed. Teyla wasn't sure if he was even conscious or not until he let his head roll back and opened his eyes. "Teyla?" His breaths were loud and raspy, his body shaking with fine muscle tremors.

"Yes, it is Teyla," she said, making her voice as soft and soothing as she could. She made sure her eyes were locked onto his, even though his gaze seemed unfocused. "We are safe, remember? You are in the infirmary and Dr. Beckett is helping you get better."

John's eyes seemed to roll in their sockets for a moment before he was able to focus on her again. "Sorry," he mumbled, his body relaxing even more. "Got . . . confused."

"It's all right, lad," said Carson, patting John's arm. "It happens. Let's get you settled back in your bed." Carson and Teyla, along with Amy, helped John get positioned back in the bed and then Carson checked the IV line, which somehow hadn't been ripped out.

"You all right, Amy?" asked Carson, frowning slightly at his slightly rumpled nurse.

Amy blushed and nodded. "I'm fine, Dr. Beckett, thank you. I think my pride might be a little wrinkled is all. I'll clean up the mess and then try again."

"That's fine, but you may want to give us a minute before trying anything else that involved needles," replied the doctor wryly.

"Yes, sir, I think that would be wise," she said before gently touching John on the arm. "I'm sorry I startled you, Colonel."

John let his head roll over so he could look up at the nurse. "S'kay," he mumbled and none of them were sure if he even knew what she was referring to. He watched her walk away and then turned his head to look up at the ceiling and then back at Teyla and Carson. "Where are we?"

Teyla felt like her heart dropped down to her feet. "Atlantis, don't you remember?"

John frowned a moment and then his expression relaxed a bit. "Oh, yeah . . . lantis . . . and you're Teyla . . . 'member now." His eyes drifted shut only to pop open a few seconds later. "They're coming back," he barked as he tried to sit up. "More drugs."

Teyla put one hand on the side of John's face, gently prodding him until he turned his face back to look at her. "No one is coming, John, we are home. We are home on Atlantis and we are safe. No more drugs and no one will hit you again. Do you understand?"

John narrowed his eyes a little as he studied her and one tear ran down the side of his face. "Teyla . . . you're dead. You're all dead."

Sighing, Teyla saw the concern she felt mirrored in Carson's face. "No, John, we are not dead. They tricked you and made you think we were dead. We are all here. Rodney and Ronon will back in a little while to see you. You have to believe me, I am fine. We are all fine. We just need for you to get better, all right?"

John closed his eyes again, his face tightening in pain and frustration. "I can't tell what's real any more . . . everything is . . . mixed up."

"That's the drugs and the hits to the head they gave you, lad," explained Carson. "I know it's difficult, but if you'll hang on, we'll get you through this. Are you in pain?"

John coughed until Carson helped him sit up so he could breathe through it. When the doctor eased him back down, John's face was pulled tight in a grimace and his teeth were clenched together.

"Aye, son, I'll take that as a yes. You've probably aggravated those cracked ribs of yours and I know you have a killer headache. I'm going to get you a little something, but I can't give you much until your blood work is clean. Would you let us get a blood sample so I can make sure those drugs are leaving your system?"

John managed to get his eyes open to slits. "No drugs . . . don't want drugs."

Carson pursed his lips a second and sighed. "I was just going to give you a wee bit of something for the headache. I can't give you anything strong just yet, so it won't alter the way you think at all. It won't make you be more confused, I promise."

Staring at Carson through almost paper-thin slits, John finally shifted his gaze to Teyla for confirmation.

"You can trust Carson to honor his word. He will not give you anything that will increase the bad feelings that you are having. And he must get the blood sample to see if the drugs Daecon gave you are gone. I will stay here with you, I promise." Teyla took his hand and held it, giving it a squeeze.

John lightly squeezed her hand back. "Okay," he whispered before closing his eyes and relaxing back against the pillows.

Teyla looked toward Carson and nodded. Carson glanced over his shoulder and to where Amy was waiting and gave her a tiny nod. While she was tying the tourniquet on John's arm, Carson grabbed the thermometer from the table next to the bed.

"All right, Colonel, while Amy is taking a sample of your blood, I'm just going to check your temperature with this ear thermometer. I didn't want to startle you." He quickly used the thermometer, timing it so that it partially distracted John from the needle in his arm. "Looks like you've still got a bit of a fever, but not too bad."

"All done," said Amy. "Thank you, Colonel. I hope this sample shows the drugs are about gone." She flashed a quick smile at Teyla and the doctor before she left.

Teyla tried to pull her hand away from John so that she could sit in the chair beside the bed, but he instantly tightened his grip and his eyes shot open. "Teyla?"

She smiled down at him while patting his arm. "It is all right, John. I am not leaving, I am just getting a chair."

John rolled his lower lip in and chewed on it a few seconds. "Sorry . . . you . . . you don't have to stay. I'm okay."

"Do not be silly," she chastised lightly. "Of course I want to stay. You rest and I will be here." His eyes darted around the room and she was afraid he was going to try to bolt again for a second. "John." She waited until he looked at her and then smiled. "We are safe. I give you my word. Do you trust me?"

His brow had slowly furrowed in to a frown, but as he looked at her, the tension decreased and his expression sagged back to neutral. "Yes, I trust you."

"Good. Then close your eyes and sleep. I am here."

He looked at her for a moment and then smiled. "Thank you." She didn't relax until his breathing evened out a few minutes later. She still felt confident he would get better, but she was afraid it might take longer than she had initially thought. When Rodney arrived a few minutes later, she put her finger to her lips and bobbed her head once toward the sleeping colonel. The scientist nodded his acknowledgement as he approached.

"He woke earlier, but was still disoriented," she whispered. "He just went back to sleep."

Rodney pulled a chair up to sit beside her, adjusting his sling when he sat down. "We met with Elizabeth. She's sending Lorne's team and Lt. Hafer's team back to the planet. Zelenka was able to pull the address from when we dialed in."

"Ronon?" she questioned, pretty sure she already knew the answer.

"He's going with them. He had a good point, though. He knows where their little base of operations is and the inside layout. I'd go, you know, but I can't with my arm all bummed up," he announced.

Teyla smiled, looking at the signed cast. "Yes, it is too bad that you will be unable to go along. I'm sure they will miss you."

"Well of course they will, but it can't be helped." They looked at John for a few moments before Rodney shifted around uncomfortably and then looked back up at Teyla. "You did good out there, you know, helping the Colonel. He trusted you. If you hadn't been able to get him to calm down, well . . . I don't know what we'd have done."

"Thank you, Rodney. I think John felt like he was protecting me and that gave him something to hang onto, a part of himself that he recognized." She smiled at the flushed scientist, knowing he was as inept at expressing emotions as the sleeping man in the bed before them. It was strange how two men could be so different and yet so alike. She chuckled, remembering two brothers from her childhood that had acted much like her two friends.

"What?" asked Rodney sharply, and she realized he thought she was laughing at him.

"I was just remembering two brothers from my youth that remind me of you and John. They were very special to me, as you are now," she explained with a good natured smile.

"Oh," he said uncertainly. "Really?"

"Yes, really. Would you like to sit with me, in case John wakes up again?"

"Yeah, I would." He looked around the infirmary and smiled. "It's really good to be home, isn't it? Funny, I didn't even mind staying in the infirmary."

"Rodney, you never mind staying in the infirmary," Teyla pointed out.

"Yes, I do. Well, unless I'm sick or injured and then it's just safer being in the infirmary so you can be taken care of. And it's kind of nice having someone bring your meals to you and fetch stuff for you. Speaking of which, I wonder if someone could bring us something to eat."

Teyla slid Rodney a sideways glance. "I thought you ate lunch before we were released."

"I did, but that was over two hours ago. Where did that nurse go?"

Teyla had to smile. Usually this was when Rodney's antics would start to annoy her, but today somehow, it was just comforting to have him safely beside her and acting normally. She sighed, wishing John was doing the same. She longed to hear him snipe at Rodney for wanting to eat again. Soon, hopefully.

oOo

Teyla startled at the touch to her arm and sat up abruptly, rubbing her eyes. She had dozed off in her chair and she glanced over to see how John was doing.

"He's okay," said Rodney. "The teams are back from the planet and about to debrief. Do you want to go?"

She blinked a few times and looked back at Rodney's strained expression. "Yes, I will come. I need to know more about why this was done to us." Checking again to make sure John looked like he was sleeping soundly, she followed Rodney out the door and they walked in silence to the conference room.

Elizabeth was already seated at the table, as was Lorne and Lt. Hafer, a tall, lean soldier with dark blonde hair. Ronon paced the back of the room like a caged animal until he saw his teammates enter. Giving them a nod, he took a seat next to where Teyla sat down.

"How's John?" asked Elizabeth.

"Sleeping," said Teyla. "Dr. Beckett said the drugs are almost gone from his system. He is still disoriented when he awakens however."

Nodding as if she expected that answer, Elizabeth looked at Lorne. "What happened out there and what did you learn?"

Lorne nodded and bobbed his head once in Ronon's direction as he began. "Ronon took us straight to their complex. There were almost thirty men, about twenty-eight of them soldiers and the other two were scientist or medical or some combination. They're from several different planets and they've somehow banded themselves together. They call themselves freedom fighters, but they're really just a bunch of thugs looking for stuff they can steal or people they can bully. This Daecon character that's the lead guy is apparently an old drinking buddy of sorts of Kolya's. He, like a lot of the others, have done some mercenary type work and I think that's when they buddied up with some of the Genii."

"So they learned about Atlantis from Kolya and his men," said Elizabeth. "From what Teyla, Ronon, and Rodney have told me, they wanted access to the city, I presume to try and take it?"

"Yes," said Lorne. "Kolya led them to believe that Atlantis is poorly protected by a bunch of Ancient wannabies and easy for the picking. They got intel telling them about our usual visit to the market, so they set up an ambush. They had the old wanted posters the Genii circulated, so they knew who they were after."

Sighing, Elizabeth pinched the bridge of her nose. "Is there any evidence the Genii helped them with this?"

"No," said Hafer. "From what they said, they got most of their information recently, well after Kolya alienated himself from the Genii people."

"Well, that's good news," she said.

"What about the freaks that held us for ten days? What happened to them?" asked Rodney, anger bleeding through in his voice.

"Daecon's dead," said Ronon matter-of-factly.

Teyla shivered a bit, remembering the cold way he had killed Kell for being a coward and a traitor to the people of Sateda. She was unsure if she wanted to know the circumstances of Daecon's death.

"We had him cornered," explained Lorne, almost as if he knew what the others were thinking. "We took out their perimeter defenses quickly and quietly, which allowed us to get in the complex pretty much undetected. Some of the pack ran and others were killed. We ended up trapping Daecon, his three top guys, and the two scientists in a lab at the rear of the complex. It got pretty ugly."

"Daecon had his men kill the scientists so they couldn't be caught and share what they knew," said Hafer, grimacing. "The man is ruthless."

"Yeah, well, we pretty much knew that already," said Rodney glumly, rubbing the cast on his arm. "I'm sure Sheppard could confirm that if he was lucid."

"We tried to talk them into surrendering, ma'am," said Lorne. "But they were pretty determined that we wouldn't take them. I think they assumed we would treat them like they had treated our people."

"I wish we'd gotten the chance," said Ronon. "They died too quickly. Sheppard is still suffering, so they should be suffering as well. Cowards."

Lorne snorted lightly and bobbed his head once. "Anyway, they kind of went crazy and rushed us, so we had to shoot them. All four of them were killed. We captured a few of them and questioned them before handing them over to the authorities in a local town they've been terrorizing for months. Their version of a police chief assured us they would take good care of them."

"Why did they only drug John?" asked Teyla. That had been bothering her since their return.

"They thought he could handle the stress of the drug and they thought, as the team leader, he would feel the most protective about his team. Along with beating him and drugging him, they threatened to kill us if he didn't give them the information. They did what we thought, paraded each of through one at a time on different days and made him think they had killed us and then told him it was his fault. Our jackets that they took? They ripped them and soaked them with blood and then told him they were ours, threw them in his face."

"The guy we talked to said that once the Colonel was dead or so far gone they couldn't get anything out of him, they would have started on one of you. They would have done that to each one of you eventually if you hadn't gotten yourselves out of there," said Lorne, looking down at the table for a second. "I'm sorry we couldn't find you."

"There was no way to trace us," said Ronon. "They made sure of that."

"We are here now and safe. That is what is important," added Teyla.

"Yeah, and now they can't do that to anyone else," said Rodney.

"We found two other prisoners in the compound," said Lorne. "We took them to that town we told you about, thinking they might know who they were. Turns out one of them was a local and they're taking care of him. The other died shortly after we got there. No one knew who it was, but they said they'd give him a proper burial."

Teyla shook her head sadly. "His family will never know what happened to him. They will continue to wonder and to look for him."

"It's cruel, but there's no way we can figure out where he came from. The men we took prisoner couldn't remember. They've apparently raided quite a few places and he'd been there a while," said Hafer.

Lorne cleared his throat after a moment of silence. "Two, maybe three of Daecon's men escaped, but they weren't the head guys or anything, so I don't think they'll pose much of a danger."

"They know about Atlantis," said Ronon. "We need to find them."

"What will they do with that knowledge?" asked Teyla. "If their leaders are dead, will they not disperse, perhaps go back to their home?"

"Probably," said Lorne.

"Unless someone else interested in us finds them," said Elizabeth.

"But we did not tell them anything," said Teyla. "We never even confirmed that Atlantis still stood."

"She's right," said Rodney, looking up hopefully. "We never really acknowledged anything except maybe that they were calling us by the right names. And they were already certain about that. What harm could they do?"

"Oh, Rodney," said Elizabeth, shaking her head. "Never make a statement like that."

oOo

Teyla glanced up as John came into the conference room and froze. The meeting with the rest of his team, Elizabeth, Carson, and Kate was already in full swing. He faltered a moment and then shifted his weight to one foot and crossed his arms. "Did you guys start without me?"

Rodney rolled his eyes. "Well, you're an hour late, what did you expect us to do? You're not back on full duty yet, so what was so important that you couldn't radio us and let us know?"

John frowned at Rodney as he resumed motion, heading for the empty chair next to the scientist. "Funny, but so not working. It's 0958, which makes me two minutes early."

Elizabeth looked a little worried as she exchanged a look with Carson. "John, the meeting began at 9:00. I reminded you this morning at breakfast."

Teyla felt her chest constrict at the stricken look on John's face. It had been nearly four weeks since their return from captivity. She and Ronon had made a quick recovery and Rodney's broken arm was healing nicely. John, however, had been plagued with severe headaches, dizziness, and sporadic bouts of short term memory loss. They had finally let him begin half days of light duty so he wouldn't lose his mind, but he was limited to things like paperwork, meetings with Lorne, and checking inventory and duty rosters.

"Oh . . . I'm sorry," he stammered, glancing down at the table. Rodney looked suitably embarrassed over his comments and Elizabeth looked like she wanted to crawl under the desk.

"It's all right, John. We've been hitting most of the boring stuff anyway," said Elizabeth lightly, trying to lessen John's guilt and humiliation.

"Right," he said softly and then stood suddenly, swaying a little before putting one hand on the desk. Everyone automatically tensed with Carson rising halfway to his feet before he realized John was all right and sat back down. John's wince said that he had seen the motion. "I, uh, . . . forgot that . . . there's something I had to do. I don't really figure you need me for this . . . so I'm just . . . uh, call me if you need me." With that, he walked hurriedly from the room.

"Well,"said Rodney. "That was awkward."

"I wonder why?" said Ronon, crossing his arms and scowling at Rodney.

Rodney looked crestfallen. "What? He's the one who asked why we were already started. I was just answering. So, what are you saying, you wanted me to lie?"

"No, but you might have been a little more . . . tactful," offered Teyla. "John is very self-conscious about his memory problems and we should not make him feel worse about his difficulties."

Rodney's back stiffened until he was sitting ramrod straight. "Well, if he wasn't such a control freak, he might relax a little and give himself a chance to get better."

"Are you saying you understand how the loss of control over events around you would be frustrating?" asked Kate.

"Yes, of course I can . . ." Rodney's head shot up and his brow furrowed. "Hey, what do you mean by that?"

Ronon grinned and leaned back in his chair. "She's saying it takes one to know one."

Elizabeth let her head dip forward and massaged her temples. "People, could we just focus here?" She looked up at Carson. "Carson, any idea how much longer John's memory glitches will last?"

Carson rubbed the side of his face and then shook his head. "No, I'm afraid I don't. The drugs have been completely out of his system for a while, but you have to remember we don't know the long term affects. Plus, we've still got the head injuries to consider. Severe concussions can result in headaches and dizziness and sometimes even bouts of disorientation for several weeks in some patients. We'll just have to be patient and try to get the Colonel to do the same."

Elizabeth looked over at Kate. "What do you think?"

Kate flashed a quick smile at Rodney before turning back to Elizabeth. "Well, I don't know that I would call Colonel Sheppard a control freak, but he is definitely outside of his comfort zone when he's lost control, especially if it involves something that compromises his ability to do his job. He feels a tremendous load of responsibility over protecting this city and the people in it and he's going to become quickly frustrated with anything that keeps him from being able to do that. I think we just need to be sure he's kept in the loop so that he knows the city is being looked after, even if he's not directly the one that's doing it."

"So I should let him stay on light duty?" asked Elizabeth.

"Yes, as long as Carson doesn't think it will negatively impact his physical health. I know he's still healing in a number of areas. But I think letting him keep up with everything that is going on and still having a part in some of the decisions that come up will do a lot to relieve the frustration of not being able to do physical things. Colonel Sheppard is used to a high level of physical activity and that is also raising his frustration level. I think we are all painfully aware of how antsy he gets when he's healing and limited in his activities."

A series of groans filled the room, driving home her point. "I know he's limited to half days of duty and I know he's supposed to take a small rest in the afternoon. I think it wouldn't hurt to take turns trying to keep him . . . entertained . . . I'm not sure if that's the right word, but at least occupied in some way for the rest of the day." Kate looked at Ronon and frowned slightly. "And I don't mean with sparring."

"I can do other things," Ronon said defensively.

"Oh, like what?" asked Rodney in a challenging voice.

Grinning, Ronon leaned across the table toward Rodney. "Like cleaning and sharpening my knives."

Rodney gulped audibly. "Oh. Nice collection, too, by the way." He turned back to Elizabeth. "You know, as much as I hate to admit it, and if any of you say anything, I'll deny it, but Sheppard's no dummy. He's going to pick up on us playing babysitter and nursemaid and he's going to hate it."

"Then don't," said Kate simply. "Don't babysit him. Do something you might ordinarily want to do with him. It doesn't have to be any more complicated than just talking."

Teyla frowned at that suggestion. "John is . . . not much for talking. Would we be able to do some simple stretching exercises if we move slowly and keep our sessions brief?"

Carson put his index finger over his lip and tapped his face several times before dropping his hand. "Possibly. I'll need you to show me what you have in mind. If it isn't too strenuous, that might be just the thing."

"Video games?" asked Rodney.

"I think that might aggravate his headaches," said Carson. "I've seen the ones you play and all that fast motion and flashing lights will probably increase his dizziness as well."

"What about chess?"

"Aye, that would be all right, I think. Just don't go on too long."

"I have a place I practice throwing knives," suggested Ronon.

Carson made an I-wish-I-didn't-know-that face and then nodded. "Once again, if you don't go too long, that should be all right. The main thing is to watch him and stop before he gets too tired or drives himself into one of his killer headaches."

"All right," Rodney said, clapping his hands together and then rubbing them back and forth a few times. "Operation Keep Sheppard Occupied has now begun."

"Rodney," Elizabeth drawled, giving him an intense stare. "He better not ever hear a word of this and he better not _ever _hear that name, is that clear?"

"Hey, I can keep my mouth shut as well as the next person."

The room once again filled with groans.

oOo

Teyla watched as John picked up the bowl of popcorn and propped his legs up on the table. "Rodney and Ronon should be here any second. They thought we needed more snacks."

Nodding, Teyla looked at him. His expression was relaxed as he threw a piece of popcorn up and caught it in his mouth. "Truly, you are a man of many talents."

John grinned as he chewed and swallowed. "Thanks. Glad that one still impresses the ladies."

Smiling, Teyla shook her head. "How did your check up with Dr. Beckett go this morning?" His mood had been light all afternoon, so she felt it a safe question to ask. This was the happiest she'd seen him in the eight weeks since they had been captured.

"Great. I was waiting until we were all together, but I guess I can spill it to you early. He's letting me back on full duty tomorrow. All my blood work and scans came back normal and I haven't forgotten where I was going or what I had for breakfast for a whole week."

"Headaches?" she asked.

He winced at that one. "I had a tiny one yesterday, but I think that was brought on by bugging Rodney in the lab. He's really loud when he yells at his minions and he yells a lot. I have no idea how they stand it."

"And did you tell Carson?"

John grinned and nodded. "Yes, I did. Since I haven't had a bad one or any dizziness in a while, he didn't seem concerned. He seemed to understand about Rodney being a possible cause as well, imagine that."

"Yes," she said happily. "Imagine that. It is good to have you feeling well again."

"Yeah, it is." His expression sobered and he looked around to the door before turning back to Teyla. "Look, uh . . . we both know I suck at this stuff, but . . . I just wanted to thank you for . . . well, I don't remember much about our escape or the next few days after that. Mostly just flashes of weird stuff and . . . being confused . . . and scared . . ." His voice quaked a bit. "Thinking you guys were all dead." He brought his eyes up to meet Teyla's. "And then . . . you helping me."

Teyla took his hand and shook her head. "You do not need to thank me. I did what any of us would have done for any other member of the team that needed it. We are family John and we take care of each other." She smiled coyly at him. "We have already decided that, remember?"

John grinned sheepishly. "Yeah, now _that _I remember. I just . . . well, you know."

Laughing, Teyla squeezed his hand. "Yes, I know."

"Oh, and thanks for Operation Keep Sheppard Occupied. I'm just glad I didn't know that's what you were doing earlier."

Teyla's eyebrows shot up. "You _know _about that?" Her eyes narrowed and she sighed. "Rodney."

John chuckled. "He talks in his sleep." When Teyla's eyes widened again, he blushed madly. "Uh, that's not what it sounds like. He didn't show up to play chess one night last week, so I went to his lab to check on him. He'd apparently been up most of the night before working on some project and he was asleep at his work bench. When he started talking, I just took a seat and listened for a while."

Teyla tried to look stern, but she could feel the grin attempting to break through. "Did he say anything else of interest?"

John shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe something about Xena and Conan."

Teyla playfully slapped John on the arm. "You are making that up."

John rubbed his arm in feigned pain. "Hey, Xena, you're going to injure me just when I'm finally ready for duty again." John let his arm drop and smiled at her. "Just . . . thanks."

Teyla returned the smile. "Any time," she said. And she meant it.

THE END

PROMPT: Sheppard, badly injured, maybe drugged, has amnesia so doesn't remember his team and so is afraid of them. Extra points if it's Teyla who takes care of him, or Ronon. Nothing against McKay, I've just been in the mood to see more Non-shipper Teyla and Sheppard interaction. Extra, extra points for an insane Sheppard.

_Hope this was close!!_


End file.
